Criteria

Results

Researchers aim to develop a composite crashbox suitable for 1000 parts/day production at low cost and adapted to current mass-market vehicle design. Various matrixes, preform types, and manufacturing processes have been evaluated by axial and 15° off-axis crash tests. Solutions for short-term development are proposed, with 66% weight reduction compared to current steel parts, and an estimated price of less than €5 per saved kg.

Panasonic will handle the cell-making activity at Tesla's coming battery manufacturing facility dubbed the Gigafactory, the two companies announced July 31. Panasonic already supplies cylindrical (18650 type) battery cells for the Tesla Model S from its factories in Japan.

The Electric Power Research Institute has announced a collaboration with 8 automakers and 15 utilities to develop and demonstrate an open grid integration platform for plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs).

ZF Friedrichshafen AG recently announced the expansion of its headquarters for China and Asia-Pacific, located in Shanghai. The company will expand its space for offices, laboratories, and test benches to 54,000 m² (581,000 ft²), an increase from the current 11,000 m² (118,000 ft²).

The Baja SAE series concluded in Illinois in June, with Cornell capturing first place at that event and also winning the Baja SAE season's Iron Team Award for top aggregate score across the three regional competitions.

Verifying the integrity of designs and ensuring that everything meets the original requirements is an important step in the design of products that meet safety requirements. As systems become more complex, it’s becoming more difficult to find all potential problems.

When Ricardo first started development of magnetically coupled kinetic energy storage devices, it looked at a number of electromagnetic simulators on the market to help shorten design-to-manufacture times.

ZF Friedrichshafen AG has formed a joint venture with YTO, a leading manufacturer of construction and agricultural machines, on the production of tractor steering axles for vehicles from 25 to 230 hp (19 to 172 kW).

Ford pickup customers have already embraced turbo V6 power in the current steel F-150. The all-new, smaller 2.7-L V6, packing 325 hp and 375 lb-ft, in a truck that is more than 700-lb lighter than the incumbent model, should find an equally willing audience.

Lockheed Martin is opening a space technology office in Great Britain to explore partnership opportunities with U.K. businesses and universities to support the U.K.'s goal of maintaining and growing its national capabilities in space.

WABCO recently opened a new Application Engineering Center in Pune, the supplier’s second such facility in India. The new center will allow WABCO’s team of application and test engineers to work closely with global commercial vehicle (CV) manufacturers in India to jointly develop customized products and solutions across a broad range of vehicle platforms, the company said in a release.

SAE International recently published J2601 “Fueling Protocols for Light Duty Gaseous Hydrogen Surface Vehicles,” the light-duty hydrogen-fueling protocol that will serve as the baseline for fueling the first generation of hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEVs).

Troy, MI-based Meritor, Inc. and brake system supplier Brakes India, Ltd. have signed a licensing and technology assistance agreement for the manufacture and sale of Meritor ELSA air disc brakes in India.

In development of an advanced test engine to demonstrate fuel-saving and emissions-reducing technologies, the EPA is using ANSYS FORTÉ CFD software, giving its engineers the ability to quickly and inexpensively make multiple design iterations.

Eric LaRoche, a recent graduate of the University of Maryland from Hamilton Square, NJ; and Jason Zide, a senior at USC from Laguna Beach, CA, along with William Priest from Chesham, Buckinghamshire, U.K., were selected as winners of the Infiniti Performance Engineering Academy, earning a year work placement with four-time Formula One World Champions Infiniti Red Bull Racing.

The 2014 Collegiate Design Series season concluded with the co-located FSAE Lincoln and FSAE Electric events. The University of Kansas placed first in the combustion class, and Universidade Estadual de Campinas did same in the electric class.

Ford Motor Co. announced Tuesday that Paul Mascarenas, Chief Technical Officer and Vice President, Research and Advanced Engineering, will retire after 32 years at Ford, effective Oct. 1. Mascarenas, an SAE Fellow, joined Ford in 1982 and served in leadership positions in Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States in product planning, program management, body engineering, and powertrain.